3 ways to Digitize Your Library

People spend their entire lives accumulating books in their library, so the value that those books contain is impossible to measure.
However, although books are quite durable, they inevitably succumb to environmental factors and start deteriorating sooner or later. The only way to prevent the books from eventually becoming unusable is to immortalize them in a digital format.

But how can you digitize your library? After all, converting hundreds or thousands of books can seem like a daunting task.

Luckily, there are methods you can use for digitizing your library and ensuring that it will remain in top condition for you and your children to enjoy.

Do-It-Yourself Methods

If you have time, you could try to convert the books on your own –although it can be problematic if you don’t have professional-grade equipment, there are methods you could use.

De-Binding a Book

If you don’t have special book-scanning equipment, you will need to de-bind your books before scanning them – that’s the only way to scan a book if you want to use a regular scanner.
The good news is that if you take the time to carefully de-bind books, the quality of the scans will be satisfactory. Sure, the process will take a

lot of time, but if you’re on a tight budget, it may be worth it. However, the biggest drawback of the process is that it permanently damages the hard copy books – after you de-bind the books, you won’t be able to use them again, so if you want to keep the physical copies of the books after digitizing them, this is not an option that you can consider.

Smart Scan with a Mobile Device

A relatively new option to scan your books is to use a smart-scan app on your mobile device to digitize your books without damaging them.
In fact, many of the apps are free, so if you take the time to go through each page using the app, you could do this even if you don’t have a budget at all.

However, this method has its drawbacks – first off, the quality of the scans isn’t great, and the app won’t help with removing imperfections. What’s more, the entire process is very time consuming, so if you’re dealing with a large number of books, this is not a realistic option.

Outsource Book Scanning

If you’re dealing with a large-scale library digitization project, the only viable option is to find a book scanning service provider that can help you complete the project in a realistic time frame.

The best part with using a professional service is obvious – you don’t have to waste your own time and can receive the digital versions of the books much faster than if you’d try to do everything yourself.

What’s more, a book and document scanning company has cutting-edge equipment that allows to scan the books without de-binding or damaging them in any other way, so once the project is finished, you can get back your entire physical book collection intact.
Finally, the top-of-the-line scanning equipment means that the books are scanned with a high-megapixel camera which helps to capture every single detail. The experienced scanning professionals then use software to remove any imperfections and ensure that you get a flawless result.